Fences

In the decade of the 50's, we were allowed to go Trick or Treating, accompanied by our parents.  This was a little difficult when we lived in the desert in a very, very small community.  Neighbors were not next door or just down the block.  But I had parents who drove us 2 hours over the El Cajon pass to the Los Angeles basin where our grandparents lived.  Their neighborhood was quite profitable for my brother and I when it came to knocking on doors and getting our treats!

One particular Halloween stands out above all others and makes me laugh even to this day!  I always liked to be a princess or something requiring a pretty dress.  This night my brother was a ghost with a sheet over him with slits cut for his eyes.  In the spooky darkness, we left our parents at street side as we sauntered up to the door.  Of course, as the girl and the oldest, I got my candy first and ran back to my parents.  Brian grabs his candy, hops off the porch and hollers, "Wait for me!"  A six year old does not always consider the consequences of deviating from the path.  Brian did not use the sidewalk and driveway to return to the street where we were waiting.  He ran as fast as his little legs could with his sheet flapping and slipping, straight across the yard.  He abruptly collided with a chicken-wire fence across the front of the yard!  He literally bounced off the chicken-wire and fell prone on the ground!  Apparently the slits for his eyes moved and he could not see where he was going!  Of course, we laughed hysterically as he lays crying!  I am laughing even now as I write this!  (Don't worry - he was not hurt!)

This story I have used for a devotional for our church monthly devotional so I will add my thoughts here as well.

Think about the different paths that have meandered into your life.  Some were God directed paths, some were tantalizingly appealing but meant only for self-pleasure and some were ordinary paths, all of which were not God's path for you.  We all have no doubt taken the path we desired, not considering the consequences if it wasn't God's path.  Watch out!  God has His own "chicken-wire fence" that you will hit head on and you will be picking yourself up off the ground. God gives us a free will but He is still in control.  His deep eternal love desires our obedience to His life path and therefore, He sometimes allows abrupt stops to pop up.  We need to pick ourselves up, change direction and choose His joyful, enduring path.

Psalms 25:4  "Show me thy ways, O Lord; teach me thy paths."
Proverbs 3:5,6  "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding.  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct they paths."

Silver Fang

9th Grade

Third grade


Now for one of my first traumatic incidents...

Another source of  irrigation on the Elmore ranch was big, long sprinkler pipes that were hand carried from row to row, connected to another pipe, then repeated  all over again until the sprinkler pipes reached the end of the row. These were big round aluminum pipes with sprinkler heads -- very bulky and awkward to handle and haul. We had a special conveyance to load them on which is too complicated to try and describe!  Except to say, it was pulled by a tractor but was basically a big round pipe with a rack on each end. The irrigation pipes were laid length-wise on the racks and transported to the field.

This red trailer was another tool in our arsenal of fun.  We thought we were in the circus and instead of walking the tight rope above ground, we attempted to walk the big pipe when all the sprinklers were in the field.  This worked great until I decided to put my slick sandals on and try to walk the pipe.  One step, two, three steps and bang!  I slipped and straddled the pipe whacking my mouth on it.  I chipped one of my front teeth.  And ran screaming into the house!!!

The next day, anything hot or cold touching that tooth was extremely painful.  (Of course, the nerve was exposed!!!)  Living in a small desert community, my parents opted to travel to my grandparents to consult with a dentist in the Los Angeles area.  The end result --- a solid silver cap was fitted over the chipped tooth and for the next 10 years, I blinded photographers with my smile!!.  And was called "Silver Fang" by some of my classmates!!!  The above picture of me in third grade shows my two front teeth before and the other picture you can see the silver tooth after!

I am amazed as I look back on this incident and wonder why I did not develop some complex with such a blatant, shining object attached to my front tooth!!  I never kept my mouth closed (as evidenced by the many times I had to write "I will not talk in class when someone else is talking" which hasn't changed any to this day!)    And it wasn't because everyone became familiar with it.  I attended 13 different schools from Kindergarten to 12th grade so I had new friends all the time!  I just did not dwell on it or actually even think about it.  I remember that some of my classmates thought my family was rich because I had a silver tooth!

After graduation from high school, my grandparents made it possible for me to have a normal white crown to replace the silver.  And of course, I never again attempted to be a circus tightrope (pipe!) walker again!!

Butcher Shop

Growing up in the country provides the opportunity for many interesting and educational activities. I don't think jumping off haystacks or eating the calves's grain pellets falls in the educational category, but it was interesting!

We raised some cattle and had milk cows (thank goodness I never had to do the milking!). One poor cow was chosen to contribute to our big freezer and provide sustenance for our family. My father got out the rifle again and quickly put down the animal. The throat was slit and bled and then the fun began. With help from friends, Daddy began to cut the meat, after which the best pieces would go to a butcher to be cut into steaks, ground into hamburger and carved into roasts. The intestines, liver and etc. would not be used..so...Daddy let me set up some plywood on some barrels and I could play "butcher shop" with the "spare parts". I thought this was definitely interesting but my brother absolutely did not and would not play with me! It was great to have our own beef to enjoy...we grew the feed, cared for the animals and then worked together to put it on the table! Well, most of us worked together! ")

A Star is Born

Third grade...I am moving up the food chain! I am no longer just a little bitty kid! Even though I am always the youngest in my class because of my January birthday!

This was the year for new experiences. Our class presented a play, "Jack in the Beanstalk". I was Jack's mother.. I only remember one thing from that play! I made a mistake during one of my scenes! I had a purse but set it behind the flat we were using as the house. I forgot I was supposed to go to the door with my purse in my hand so I had to reach back to pick it up. Isn't it funny what stays in your memory? I do know that i enjoyed the drama experience but obviously I was disappointed in myself because I didn't give a perfect performance.

Pick Two...

Another memory plucked from the little brown grab bag...

Using our creative juices together as a team, my brother, Brian and I climbed onto the back of the road grader. Daddy was getting ready to grade the dirt roads surrounding the ranch. Deep breath...mm..mm..mm..the fresh, moist smell of dirt that has just been turned over by the road grader blade...the smooth softness of the dirt... all are great canvases for little bare feet to "foot brush" squiggles and curves as the grader slowly moves. Needless to say, these pieces of "art" are not able to be displayed on the wall or preserved with other memorabilia!!

The blazing sun has set, the rejuvenating coolness has touched our skin. We are ready for more fun! Daddy is ready to roll in the Jeep, 22 rifle by his side. And we are two eager passengers. We are hunting jack rabbits!!! I know, they are such cute things with those long ears! However, they devour the alfalfa, our future fodder for the hay-eating animals. Once a jack rabbit is spotted, the bright, blinding spotlight lights up his world, the Jeep rolls to a stop and BLAM!!! Daddy reduces the jack population by one! No, we did not get to shoot. Later on, I did get to do some target practice with the 22 rifle but no hunting.

Instant Communication

I must divert for a minute from my "memoirs"! Here is something to consider --

Today we are able to communicate around the world, in all time zones, at the touch of a button or screen. No longer do you breathlessly wait for the mailman to receive the recent happenings in your family's life via the old fashioned handwritten letter. The silence of the vintage phone no longer causes anxiety as you wait for the report from the doctor.

Now 24/7 we are connected - by hip, hand, or ear - to our circle of family and friends through the internet technology available on tablets, readers, phones, and laptops. Just pluck that tech gadget out of your pocket, push a button and you have instant communication no matter where you are.

I will admit to being one of those who likes her "gadgets", although I do still love to write the old fashioned way. But what about our communication with the Lord? Do we need wi-fi to contact Him? Do we need to search our contact list for His number? Or is it easier to "text" Him so there is no personal contact? Did He put His communication on vibrate or did we?

Fortunately, His answer is no! he is always there to hear our cry, rejoice in our joy, whisper His counsel, wipe sorrow's tears, encourage us in despair as we stumble through this imperfect life. We have an instant open "internet" to God's heart and God's ears. Communication, as we know, works both ways. I only need to speak and He hears. He speaks and I listen. Such a simple but powerful communication!!!

May we keep the lines of communication intact minute by minute as we invite the Lord to "iChat" with us as we deepen our relationship with Him.

"But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God, that I may declare all thy works." Psalms 73:28

Grab Bag

Once upon a time...could mean any time: My memories do not have any sequence to them. Why didn't I keep a diary??? :) It would have been a very lengthy, laborious job as a preschooler ---even in elementary school!!! Now I will pull out some memories from my "Grab Bag".

Living in the wide open Mojave desert meant freedom to experience so many fun things that city kids could not do. One of our favorites during the hot, dry summers was to sit in the bubbling water that poured from the irrigation valves in our alfalfa fields. The fields were made into rows and the irrigation valves were opened to pour forth down the row to nourish the growing plants. Great way for us to cool off!! We also had a "reservoir" which we enjoyed using -- under the supervision of a parent, of course!

Speaking of alfalfa, once it reached its maturity, my father would get out the tractor and the mower (this is not like a lawn mower but being as I am not mechanically competent, I will not attempt to explain this piece of farm equipment!). The alfalfa would lay cut in the field until it was dry. Another piece of farm equipment was then utilized to rake up the dry alfalfa into rows. The baler would then travel down each row, making bales. These bales were heavy!!! My father would use hay hooks and load them on a trailer so they could be added to the haystack. The animals would have a source of food to last them for awhile and we had more entrainment jumping off the haystacks! Our fields now were just stubbles of dried alfalfa plants.

Which brings me to another incident. My mother and i were up at our reservoir enjoying some cooling off time. Others were there as well, I assume, as we rarely did things without a group to add to the fun. Something caught our attention and we looked down on the ranch. Smoke was pouring from one of the buildings - one of the residences!!!! I took off running while my mother got in the car. Now have you ever run barefoot over alfalfa stubble? Those short dry stems sticking up are a bit prickly but they did not slow me down!!! It was the back porch of one of the homes an employee lived in. The house had to be rebuilt and we eventually lived in the new home. The cause of the fire was probably a glass jar sitting in the sun on the porch. At any rate, I was a fire/police/ambulance chaser at an early age!!!! I always want to know what is going on and what everyone's story is!

iGod

In our world today, it seems we, at some point in time, will use something with the little "i" at the beginning...iPhone, iPad, iPod, iCloud and etc. When iGod was utilized for a series of Biblical sermons, being of sound but ancient mind, I was a bit offended at the use of "iGod". It seemed almost disrespectful to our Lord.

As i mulled it over, I realized that there was a message for my heart in just that simple expression, "iGod". I should always live selflessly, desiring to let God shine through me. It is not all about me!! Rather, it is all about God - bringing glory to Him. This is not an easy task to practice on a daily, hourly basis. How often the big "I" rears its head!!!

However, "...with God all things are possible", therefore I humbly acknowledge my weak, sinful self and desire His Holy Spirit to remind me diligently to let the "little i" remain in the background while the big "G" is visible to all. May Jesus shine through me, inspite of me!

"That ye may be blameless and harmless, children of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world." Philippians 2:15